Council to seek an updated downtown parking study after COVID changes to curbside use

Planning staff asked council to accept a strategic planning and feasibility grant from New York State and to enter a contract with Nelson ygaard to update the city’s downtown parking study.

Sarah Glosse, planning staff, said the grant award from Empire State Development (ESD) reimburses 50 percent of the project; she corrected figures in the meeting, saying the total project cost is $110,000 with a $55,000 grant and a $55,000 local match. The update is intended to incorporate COVID-era changes — notably significant increases in curbside pickup, food delivery uses and rideshare activity — and to capture data that was not included previously because the Collier Street ramp was demolished mid-study in 2017. Glosse said the consulting firm Nelson ygaard, which performed the 2017 study and already holds baseline data, is the staff-recommended consultant for the update.

Council members asked whether the study would examine enforcement and technology for zones and loading areas. Glosse said the study scope includes evaluating whether existing parking zones, loading areas and enforcement technologies make sense given changes in curbside demand, and that it will include a communications plan to explain any changes to residents and businesses. She said staff would like to begin data collection in April to capture student volumes before summer.

Glosse said the local match for the grant is budgeted in the capital fund and that the department will provide the specific budget line prior to final legislation. The council expedited consideration of the legislation by unanimous roll call during the work session.